International mother language day
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International Mother Language Day commemorates a student protest in Dhaka, Bangladesh in 1952. The students were protesting the government's decision to make Urdu the sole national language of Pakistan, disregarding the Bengali language spoken by most in East Pakistan. When police killed student demonstrators on February 21st, 1952, it sparked widespread unrest. The movement campaigned for the right to use their mother language of Bengali. In 1956, Bengali became an official language of Pakistan. To honor the movement and victims, a memorial was constructed. In 2000, the UN declared February 21st International Mother Language Day.
International mother language day
- 2. When the state of Pakistan was formed in 1947, its two regions, East Pakistan (also called East Bengal) and West Pakistan, were split along cultural, geographical, and linguistic lines. In 1948, the Government of Pakistan ordained Urdu as the sole national language, sparking extensive protests among the Bengali-speaking majority of East Pakistan. Facing rising sectarian tensions and mass discontent with the new law, the government outlawed public meetings and rallies.
- 3. The students of the University of Dhaka and other political activists defied the law and organized a protest on 21 February 1952. The movement reached its climax when police killed student demonstrators on that day. The deaths provoked widespread civil unrest. The unrest continued as Bengali speakers campaigned for the right to use their mother language. Bengali became an official language in Pakistan on February 29, 1956.
- 7. The Shaheed Minar monument was constructed near Dhaka Medical College in memory of the movement and its victims.
- 8. Achievements On November 17, 1999, UNESCO proclaimed February 21 to be International Mother Language Day and it was first observed on February 21, 2000. Each year the celebrations around International Mother Language Day concentrate on a particular theme. 2000, Inaugural celebration of International Mother Language Day 2001, Second annual celebration 2002, Linguistic Diversity: 3,000 Languages in Danger (slogan: In the galaxy of languages, every word is a star) 2003, Fourth annual celebration 2004, Children's learning (the observance at UNESCO included "a unique exhibition of childrens exercise books from around the world illustrating the process by which children learn and master the use of written literacy skills in the classroom") 2005, Braille and Sign languages 2006, Languages and Cyberspace 2007, Multilingual education 2008, International Year of Languages 2010, International Year for the Rapprochement of Cultures